Anhydrite+Ditra+Porcelain - Mapei Primer or not / Keraquick with or without Latex Plus

[Ricochet]

Hi Alan
You're welcome to presume of course, I guess the tech guy at Mapei is equally uninformed?

 

[Ajax123]

Hi Alan
You're welcome to presume of course, I guess the tech guy at Mapei is equally uninformed?

It would be innaproprate for me to comment on the technical guy at Mapei. I have run training sessions for them in the past in the UK but not for some considerable time. They dont have gypsum based adhesives in the UK so are a bit scuppered for choice so they are not generally my primary recomendation over here. I dont know what they have in Italy. I do know that Kerakoll and Mapei in Italy are very much arch rivals so I would have thought they would have similar materials.

I also find that often people over specify for anhydrite in the misuided beleif that more is better. I find that simply using appropriate materials is the cheapest and easiest way forward.

 

[Ricochet]

Hi Alan

I am disappointed that you consider it appropriate to afford greater courtesy to the guy at Mapei than you do myself, maybe time for you to revisit that LKAB code of conduct, who knows I could have been a potential customer.

Having worked all my life in the UK construction industry, mostly with national main contractors, I have a very good eye for detail and specification. I have also witnessed some spectacular failures in the early days of Calcium Sulphate / Anhydrite screeds, failures that cost a lot of money, time and disruption and we all know that consequential losses are never recoverable. Those experiences stay with you Alan.
I have no doubt that these products have evolved and improved, but I also note that Anhydrite screed producers / contractors always want to compare their product to traditional sand and cement screeds rather than self-levelling cementitious screeds, telling perhaps.

Gypsum has its place, my career started as a plasterer, but I am not convinced that floors are its optimum application, not least because of its love of moisture. From the knowledge and experience that I have and the research that I did, I chose a cementitious self-levelling screed for the following reasons:

Cost

Speed of laying

Quality of finish, flatness and level

Speed of drying / foot traffic

Thermal performance with UFH

Strength

No laitance

COSHH implications

No sanding required (although I did choose to hand sand)

Choice of adhesive / cost of adhesive

No priming required

No requirement for decoupling

Moisture resistance

Recycled content

End of life disposal implications

I have no doubt that in my case, a pumped self-levelling cementitious screed was the best choice, that is my opinion, an informed and impartial opinion.
I would urge anyone to consider its use carefully, I believe it is available in the UK from companies like Tarmac Topflow, Mincrete Cemfloor, EasyFlow, Longfloor. These are the names I found from a quick google.

Ciao

 

[Ajax123]

Hmmm… I’m not sure what about my reply you found discourteous. My apologies if you were offended. There was no intention to do so.

 

[Kevbos]

Hi, I appreciate your clarification. No, I didn't know Tile Master was owned by Kerakoll. I have had to think sideways as there are less products here and they are different. I am keen to be 100% sure the floor doesn't fail and some of the manufacturers to me don't seem to be genuine. They won't be there if things go wrong whatever they have said on the telephone. All the best and thanks again for your comments.

I was on a job at London Bridge many years ago when anhydrate first stated to be used !! We tiled 3 floors of flats !to recommended guides !! We then had to go back and take it all up !! Mapei were used to find problem ! They did ! Laytenance needed taking off ! Floor needed a newly invented primer then a matting !ditra or equivalent ! Stuck with mapei keraflex and the previously mentioned additive !! There is no way ever that anhydrate should not be primed !! I would go with mapei as I have never had problem since that job in 2005 !